This is an extremely useful knot, and it is used throughout all areas of mountaineering. Its simplicity of tying, allied with its ease of adjustment, make it ideal to secure yourself to an anchor system. It can also be tied with one hand, a useful property when needing to arrange an anchor whilst holding on to the rock or an ice axe for security…
Figure-of-eight knot
This is an essential knot, and it can be tied in a number of ways. It is the main method that many people use when tying on to a harness, and when tied slightly differently it is a quick and effective method of tying on to anchors…
Calculating distance
Being able to calculate distance is an important skill in poor visibility or when an objective is not obvious…
Walking on a bearing
Hold the compass firmly in your hand in front of your body, making sure that there are no metal objects nearby. Rotate yourself until the needle sits in the correct manner over the arrow on the bottom of the housing, ensuring that you have the north end of the needle, often painted red, over the pointed part of the arrow…